Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 60

by Amer A. Vargas

NUTTY APPLE MARTINI

Happy October, dear readers!

Fall is already here in the Northern hemisphere, and this month we are paying tribute to the season of rain and yellow and brown leaves, a perfect time for quiet, cozy afternoons snuggled under a warming blanket.

On such an occasion I propose that you could indulge yourselves with a Nutty Apple Martini, a delicious cocktail with a beautiful mix of nutty aromas provided by Pecan-flavored vodka, a bit of cinnamon, and the kick of apple cider.

These are the ingredients you will need to prepare it:

For the glass rim:

• 2 tablespoons of granulated sugar (white, brown or both)
• ¼ tablespoon of ground cinnamon
• Maple syrup

For the cocktail:

• 90 ml./3 oz. apple cider
• 60 ml./2 oz. Pecan Vodka
• 15 ml./½ Ginger Liqueur

Garnish: Apple slices rubbed with lemon juice and cinnamon sticks.

Before mixing the liquid ingredients, make the rim frost by mixing sugar and cinnamon in a shallow plate. Pour some maple syrup on a small shallow plate and dip the rim of the martini glass in it, turning to coat. Then dip the rim into the sugar and cinnamon mixture.

Then put ice, the apple cider, the flavored vodka and the ginger liqueur in a cocktail shaker and shake vigorously for a few seconds.

Pour the mix into the prepared glass and garnish to your taste.

I had the pleasure of trying this concoction at a friend’s cocktail bar a few days ago and he even referred me to his source for the recipe: The Beach House Kitchen, a website with “easy recipes for casual entertaining” as hostess (and Nutty Apple Martini creator) Mary Ann Dwyer puts it. You can enjoy some light reading and the original recipe by clicking here: https://thebeachhousekitchen.com

Cheers and Happy Fall!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President—feel free to contact him via email, AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 59

by Amer A. Vargas

AUTUMN COCKTAIL

As Fall is about to arrive, I would like to devote this month’s cocktail to the beauty of that season. On this occasion, we present the Autumn Cocktail, as concocted by its creator, Simon Difford, Founder and CEO of world famous, Difford’s Guide, a must-have for any cocktail connoisseur and lover.

This cocktail is really quite simple to make, although it takes some additional work compared to more traditional cocktails. The reason for this is that a fresh Passion Fruit is used, as well as some freshly pressed apple juice.

This is the full list of the ingredients used:

• 1 fresh passion fruit
• 2 oz./60 ml. of Bison Grass vodka
• 1 oz./30 ml. of freshly pressed apple juice
• 1/2 oz./15 ml. of Passion Fruit syrup
• ½ oz./15 ml. pasteurized egg whites

And this is how it is prepared: cut the passion fruit and scoop the flesh into a shaker, then add the rest of the ingredients and ice cubes, and shake well. Use a fine strainer to serve this mixture into a chilled Martini glass.

Garnish with an apple slice or, as this butler prefers, with it’s sundried counterpart, for a more “autumn-like” touch.

Cheers and Happy Fall!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President—feel free to contact him via email, AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 58

by Amer A. Vargas

DRINK-N-FRUIT

With summer reaching its high temperatures in the northern hemisphere it is probably wise to reduce alcohol consumption to keep our bodies as hydrated as we can. So, in this month’s cocktail article I propose a very natural “brew for all ages”, if you can call it that, which provides double hydration, both by the liquid ingredient (still or sparkling water, or soda) and the solid ingredients: fruits of all sorts.

And the best part of this drink is, it is very easy to personalize as long as one knows the drinker’s favorites fruits.

Preparation for this cocktail is very simple: all ingredients should be cold, preferably straight from the fridge, to enhance their refreshing sensation when imbibed; ice can be added, but it is unnecessary if ingredients are already cold enough.

Then, to facilitate their consumption, it is suggested you cut and slice the chosen fruits into easy-to-eat bite-sized pieces or chunks, bearing in mind the brim diameter of the glass in which you will serve them. Once all fruit is ready, stick the pieces on a skewer, alternating different fruits and colors to create a more beautiful visual effect, and drop the skewer in the glass when ready.

In the picture above, we played with the aromas and colors of strawberries, oranges, pineapples and kiwis, achieving a delicious sweet and citric overall taste.

And finally, top up the glass with the liquid of choice: sparkling water is the best option as the fizziness will help to extract the flavors of fruit; for still water, stir it with the skewer to help release the best of the fruit.

As always, the quality of the ingredients will determine the quality of the final product. Be sure to try a bit of each of the fruit items before you slide them onto the skewer, to ensure you have the nice flavors you expect out of each fruit.

The Drink-n-Fruit is actually an ideal “cocktail” for any time of the year, really, but I believe it feels especially good in the hot summer sun, particularly if enjoyed while lying on a floating lounge in a pool: a great drink in a special setup.

Easy said, easy made. Stay fresh and enjoy!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President—feel free to contact him via email, AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 57

by Amer A. Vargas

Frozen Blue Chi Chi

While the sun heats up most of the corners of the northern hemisphere, this might be a great time to have fun creating a cocktail that’s not only fresh and tasty, as always, but also allows for slightly different variations by playing with the ingredients.

On this occasion, we draw on a concoction suggested by cocktail lovers from TheSpruceEats.com, a publication we introduced in March last year when I wrote about the Red Carpet cocktail, honoring the Oscar Awards with a brew mixing vodka, Campari, pomegranate schnapps and juice. If you want to revisit that article, be sure to click here.

So let’s see about the Frozen Blue Chi Chi. This cocktail is an adaptation of an adaptation: the Frozen Blue Chi Chi, as you are about to discover, comes from the Chi Chi cocktail, which itself can be traced back to the world famous Piña Colada. However, where the original Piña Colada is based on rum, the Chi Chi uses vodka, and where the Chi Chi uses just vodka, the Frozen Blue Chi Chi uses both vodka and Blue Curaçao.

One of the things that makes this cocktail extra special is that we go one step beyond the ordinary by adding a scoop of vanilla ice cream to make this drink a bit more “by the poolside” enjoyable.

These are the ingredients you will need for one serving:

• Ice cubes
• 2 oz/ 6 cl Vodka
• 5 oz/ 1.5 cl Blue Curaçao
• 5 oz/ 1.5 cl Cream of coconut
• 4 oz/ 12 cl Pineapple juice (or a cup of fresh pineapple)
• A scoop of vanilla cream
• Pineapple wedge or slice and/or a colorful edible flower

To prepare it you will need a blender. Put all the ingredients, including 3-4 ice cubes and mix until smooth. Serve in a margarita or hurricane glass and garnish with pineapple and/or edible flower.

Summer vacations are in the air. So let’s warm up by freshening up with a yummy Frozen Blue Chi Chi. Cheers!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President—feel free to contact him via email, AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.

Let’s Talk about Mixology, Part 56

by Amer A. Vargas

WHISKEY SOUR (AND VARIATIONS)

Welcome again to the fascinating and diverse world of cocktails.

On this occasion, we devote our article to a century-and-a-half old cocktail that is never out of fashion. A few months back we published the Thyme Will Tell recipe, a variation of the original Whiskey Sour we are revisiting today.

Interestingly enough, the Whiskey Sour was first mixed during the second half of the nineteenth century and published in El Comercio de Iquique, a Peruvian local newspaper from Iquique, currently a Chilean city. The newspaper comments on the cocktail being created by Elliott Stubb, the butler on the vessel Sunshine, who decided to set anchor at Iquique seaport and “on a certain day, was doing some experiments in his cocktail shaker with whiskey and Pica lemon (a type of key lime), and the taste reached pleasures above any of the concoctions he used to serve his guests. He added sugar to a portion of Pica lemon, a bit of ice, whiskey in the right proportion and shook the mix for a few seconds. He tried the most exquisite drink he had ever prepared. From now on—Elliot said—this will be my everyday drink, my favorite drink, and I’ll call it Whiskey Sour (soured by the lemon).”

These are the proportions and ingredients used nowadays:

• 4.5 cl/ 1.5 oz of bourbon whiskey
• 3 cl/ 1 oz of fresh lemon juice, and
• 1.5 cl/ 0.5 oz of simple syrup.

Ingredients are shaken with abundant ice in the shaker and strained into a lowball glass with ice—or a cobbler glass if the drinker prefers no ice—then garnished with a slice of orange or lemon and a Maraschino cherry.

And since we are on the subject, we may as well look at two additional variations: The Frothy Whiskey Sour created by Mr. ‘Lennon’ Aguilar, Head Bartender and Operations Supervisor of Food and Beverage at 1842 Whisky and Cigar Bar in Manila. He adds an egg white to the ingredients in the shaker to create a frothy texture, and finishes by charring a cinnamon stick. You can see it here.

And a more common variation is the well-known New York Sour that follows the same steps stated above (but using 6 cl/ 2 oz of bourbon whiskey instead of 4.5 cl/ 1.5 oz) and finished by adding 1.5 cl/ 0.5 oz of Shiraz or Malbec wine.

Whichever your choice, happy June and cheers!

Mr. Vargas is the Institute’s President—feel free to contact him via email, AmerVargas @ modernbutlers.com

The Institute is dedicated to raising service standards by broadly disseminating the mindset and superior service expertise of that time-honored, quintessential service provider, the British Butler, updated with modern people skills, and adapted to the needs of modern employers and guests in staffed homes, luxury hotels, resorts, spas, retirement communities, jets, yachts & cruise ships around the world.